Short Communication. Age at Onset of Necrotizing Enterocolitis

Abstract

The epidemiologic interrelationships among birth weight, gestational age and age at onset of necrotizing enterocolitis [NEC] of the human newborn were studied. As birth weight increased, the range of ages at onset and the mean age at onset both decreased. Weekly birth weight-specific attack rates for NEC declined sharply in all birth weight groups when the equivalent of 35-36 wk gestational age was reached. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that the risk period for NEC is determined primarily by the maturity of the gastrointestinal tract of the newborn.